وَفَدْتُ وَمِصْرُ فِي الظَّلْمَاءِ

مُوِحشةٌ كمَا تدْرِي

I came, and Egypt was in darkness,

Lonely as you know.

وَليْسَ العَائِدُونَ دجىً

إِلى الديوَانِ بِالكُثرِ

And those returning at dusk

To the Diwan were not many.

فَمَا اسْتَجْليْتُ إِلاَّ

أَوْجُهاً لِلصَّفْوَةِ الْغُرِّ

So I saw only the faces

Of the virtuous elite.

وَقَدْ سَهِرُوا كَمَا بَكَرُوا

بِلاَ وَهَنٍ وَلاَ فَترِ

They had stayed up as they rose early,

Without fatigue or remiss.

وَفِيهِمْ أَوَّلاً سَامٍ

وَفِيهِمْ ثانِياً فِكْرِي

Among them, first was Sam,

And second, my Fikri.

هُمَا لِلْحَلِّ وَالْعَقْدِ

هُمَا لِلنَّهْيِ وَالأَمْرِ

They both handle binding and loosing,

Commanding and forbidding,

هُمَا لِلْمِيَرَةِ الكَافِيَةِ

الْحَاجَاتِ فِي الْقُطْرِ

They both handle sufficient oversight

Of the country’s needs.

يَنَامُ الشَّعْبُ مَا سَهِرَتُ

عَلَيْهِ مُقْلَةُ الْبِرِّ

The people sleep while

The caretakers of righteousness stay up.

فَبَعْدَ تحِيةٍ عَجْلى

وَتَمْهِيدٍ مِنَ الْعُذْرِ

So after a hasty greeting,

And prefacing with an excuse,

جَلَسْتُ وَأَنْتَ مَشْغُولٌ

بِأَمْرٍ أَيِّمَا أَمْرِ

I sat while you were busy

With some matter, whatever it was.

تُحَرِّكُ دَائِباً قَلَماً

عَلَى قُرْطَاسِهِ يَجْرِي

You kept moving a pen

That flowed on its paper.

وَتَضَطَرِبُ السَّجيرَةُ بَيْنَ

أُنْمُلُتَيْكَ وَالثَّغْرِ

And the cigarette quivered between

Your fingers and lips.

فَتُحْدِثُ مِنْ حَرِيقِ التَّبْغِ

جَوّاً عَابِقَ النَّشْرِ

So it produced a smoke that climbed

Dispersing as it rose.

تخَالُ ثَوَابِتُ الأَضْواءِ

فِيهِ أَنْجُماً تَسْرِي

The fixed lights within it

Seemed to be stars drifting.

فَتَابَعْتُ الدُّخَانَ يَمُوجُ

بَيْنَ الْمُدِّ وَالْجَزْرِ

I watched the smoke billowing

With its surges and ebbs,

بِثَائِرِهِ وَسَاجِيهِ

أَفَانِينُ مِنَ السِّحْرِ

With its fragrant whisps

Like spells of sorcery.

ظَلِلْتُ هُنَيْهَةً أَرْنو

إِلَيْهِ بِطَرْفِ مُسْتَقْرِ

I glanced at it a moment, inclining

Toward it with a settled gaze.

فَأَبْدَى لِي مَكَانَ الْخَلْقِ

وَالتَّقْدِيرِ فِي الْفِكْرِ

So it showed me the place of genesis

And destiny in thought.

وَصَوَّرَ فِي إِشارَاتٍ

رَفِيفَ خَوَالِجِ الصَّدْرِ

And it depicted in gestures

The stirrings of emotions in the breast,

كَأَني شَاهِدٌ حَالَيْكَ

بَيْنَ السَّطْرِ وَالسَّطْرِ

As if I saw your state

Between line and line,

بِحَيْثُ الْقَوْلُِ فِي يُسْرٍ

وَحَيْثُ الْقَوْلُ فِي عُسْرِ

Where speech comes easily

And where speech comes with difficulty,

وَحَيْثُ إِذَا نَبَا الإِلْهَامُ

لُذْتَ بِنجْدَةِ الذِّكْرِ

Where, when inspiration awakens,

You find help in recollection.

وَحَيْثُ تُعَالِجُ الرَّأْيَيْنِ

مِنْ عَبْدٍ وَمِنْ حُرِّ

And where you deal with two opinions,

Of a servant and a freeman.

فَأُعْجَبُ بِالدُّخَانِ وَمَا

جَلاَه لِي مِنَ السِّرِّ

So I was amazed by the smoke and what

It had revealed to me of secrets,

كَأَنَّ حِجَاكَ مِنْهُ وَرَا

ءَ شَفَّافٍ مِنَ السِّتْرِ

As if your cloud from it had lifted

A diaphanous veil.

أَرَانِي صِدْقَ مَا قَالُوهُ

عَنْ عِلْمٍ وَعَنْ خُبْرِ

It showed me the truth of what they said

Of knowledge and experience.